“The sweet-smelling chocolate lily is a favourite of mine. It has a scent similar to that of chocolate and can be eaten raw and added to other foods as a decoration on top of cakes. I like it because it is a pretty little plant that you can’t walk by without noticing. The cabbage butterflies are ancestral spirits watching.” — Deanne Gilson In 'Karrap Karrap Beenyak — Flower Baskets of Knowledge', Deanne Gilson depicts dilly bags and baskets drawn from the South Eastern collection of artefacts held within the Melbourne Museum, and gifts from family and friends. They reclaim cultural knowledge, mixing tradition with the lived experiences of her ancestors and re-enriching her life with culture, Country and connection, through the creation of new art. The works highlight the use of Indigenous plants for healing and bush foods, and the Wadawurrung Creation Story and connection to Dja (Country). Artist Bio Dr Deanne Gilson is a proud Wadawurrung woman and an award-winning visual artist living and creating from her ancestral home of Ballarat in Victoria. Her multidisciplinary art practice interrogates the colonial disruption of her family and explores ways in which contemporary art can create a platform towards healing, acceptance and reclaiming cultural identity, often drawing upon traditional knowledges of her ancestors. The Victorian bush where Gilson grew up features predominantly in all of her paintings, alongside many Indigenous plants, trees and birds from her Creation Story. Gilson draws upon layers of tangible and intangible knowledge, she talks about the presence of the intangible as spiritual connections to Country and her ancestors, while the tangible knowledge reflects artefacts and other objects of daily Wadawurrung life. Her works portray a rich cultural history that continues to thrive and grow today despite the restrictions placed on her family by settlement. Gilson’s practice defines Aboriginal women’s business past and present through contemporary art. Traditional marks alongside contemporary marks, link her to the practices of Indigenous mark-making, especially that on her body when in ceremony. Stating that “all of my artworks are an extension of my women’s business and draw on ochre sourced from Wadawurrung Dja (Country)”. The white is used in traditional ceremonies, while the charcoal is a direct link to Gilson’s matriarchal line of her mother’s business. Gilson’s mother, Marlene Gilson, also an artist, gathers charcoal from her daily fire, passing this onto her daughter, extending upon the old and the new ways of sharing knowledge and connection to Country. Painting

In October 2000, Council invited three artists from the region (Deborah Halpern, Matcham Skipper, Tony Trembath) to submit designs for a sculpture / public art work for the Eltham Town Square. The commission was paid for by supermarket giant Safeway (Woolies) as part of its supermarket permit, which required them to contribute to beautification work in the Town Square.This is the third of three parts. The 'Spirit of Nillumbik' is a celebration of the artistic spirit of Eltham and surrounding communities. Each area is identified through the flora and fauna represented in the panels. The work honours the many creative artists and architects, past and present, who have built homes and shaped lives and livelihoods with their unique creative spirit. Halpern describes her work as a public expression of their individual and collective visions. Halpern acknowledges these contributions to our hand-made history and the influence they have on the character and identity of Eltham and Nillumbik.Realistic depiction of 'chocolate lilies' in wrought iron (three flowers in bloom, four large buds and six small buds). Chocolate lilies are indigenous to Nillumbik.N/A

Cliff Beauglehole was an orchardist at Portland, Victoria, who throughout hislife took an intense interest in the plants of Victoria. Over his lifetime he collected 90,000 plant specimens as part of a comprehensive study of Victoria's plants and wrote thirteen books under the heading The Distribution and Conservation of Vascular Plants in Victoria, each written to cover the 13 study areas of the Victorian and Conservation Council.A mounted botanical specimen.beauglehole herbarium, herbarium specimen, botany, herbarium, plant science, plant specimen, field naturalists' club ballarat, federation university herbarium, arthropodium strictum, chocolate lily, asparagaceae

House in Greensborough, photo taken in spring 1939.Photocopy of black and white photograph of a house in a treed area, with woman outside. Also copy of reverse of photo with captionCaption on back of photo is almost illegible. It has been transcribed as " Greensborough - 22nd October 1939. Our house, from the back, with Mother and Morris. This Spring was phenomenally rich in wild flowers. The ground here is carpeted thickly with purple and gold - chocolate lilies. Buttercups and bulbine liliesgreensborough, spring

Protest rally against Nillumbik Shire Councillors' proposal to sell off 17 community reserves. Held at the site of the former Shire of Eltham offices, at 895 Main Road, which were demolished in August 1996, followed by a march along Main Road finishing at the Eltham Railway Station car park at Luck Street. Estimated attendance was approximately 3,000.Born digital image (15)nillumbik shire council, parks, save community reserves, protest rally

Object. Green Velvet & Silk Decorative Chocolate Box Late Victorian Era Circa 1890. Gold Metal Edged Decoration On Each Corner & Gold Metal Clasp. The Centre of the Lid is Decorated with a Large White Moulded Piece of Celluloid Over Heavy Cardboard. The Celluloid Decoration depicts a Classical Scene either Roman or Grecian; 2 Ladies, 1 Reclining & 1 Standing, With A Peacock & A Swan Around A Pond Containing Lotus Flowers Or Water Lilies in Foreground. The Side of the Box were Silk & 3 Beads in Each of the Corners.J.S. Fry & Sonsdomestic equipment, containers, green velvet chocolate box

The newsletter highlights local council initiatives, community events, environmental programs, and infrastructure developments occurring across the Nillumbik Shire during late 2001. It focuses on community engagement, sustainability, local culture, and service improvements for residents. Christmas 2001 articles include: Governor of Victoria re-dedicates Kangaroo Ground War Memorial Tower [Shire of Eltham War Memorial] Election details (2002) Summer at the Diamond Creek Pool Community Safety Expo Nillumbik Festival of the Arts: ‘art, caught in the act’ 22 Feb to 3 Mar 2002 Neighbourhood Character Study out for comment Plans to revive St Andrews Market site Integrated Transport Strategy seeks less car usage Eltham Festival Album Rural connector roads strategy Rural Collector Roads to be Sealed Roundabout funding for Diamond Creek Community Fireguard helps prepare for fire Planning for bush fire this summer Capital Works projects on track for 2001-2002 Eltham Town Square opens council newsletters, nillumbik news, nillumbik shire council, alistair knox, andre haermeyer, andrea roberts, andy griffiths, barry dickens, brett wood, brooke ryan, david holmgren, deborah halpern, emma sam, erin monagle, jenny bourke, john butler, nick carson, robert doyle, sigmund jorgensen, tony fitzgerald, wendy evans, harry gilham, sally crew, matthew hall, diamond creek pool, edendale farm, peter perkins, norman golgerth, coco's lunch, sebastian jorgensen, judy jacques, invention in time, leslie avril, lola's delight, robbie grieg, chocolate lilies choir, st andrews market, neighbourhood character, eltham festival, frank lynch, eltham town square, ross mather, wendy mather, vince jones, rural road, plenty valley 88.6 fm, tony raunic, shire of eltham war memorial, jacinda brown